Verbund Promotes Austria’s Young Scientists with VERENA Award

3/25/2009Wien

Tuesday evening, 24 March 2009, saw the presentation in Vienna of VERENA 2007, the Verbund advancement award for renewable energies. The scientists have conducted practice-oriented projects on the energy system and efficiency, and submitted these to Austria's leading electricity company. This year sees the VERENA (Verbund Renewable Energy Award) being awarded for the sixth time.

"Austria’s scientists provide all of us with outstanding services, which can represent an important basis for a better energy and climate future," praised Verbund Director Wolfgang Anzengruber at the award ceremony, which was held within the framework of the Verbund research forum. "All 22 submitted works were first-rate."

The 1st prize, worth 4,000 Euro, was awarded to Dipl.-Ing. Dr. Ernst Schriefl. In an interdisciplinary approach, he dealt with greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption in Austria’s residential buildings. To this end, Schriefl developed a special simulation model. This resulted, among other things, in the emission of greenhouse gases being reduced by one third - even in the case of a purely financially motivated improvement of a residential building’s energy situation.

The 2nd prize, worth 3,000 Euro, went to Dipl.-Ing. Rene Braunstein for his work on energy efficiency and the cost-reduction potential for Austria’s agricultural industry. Braunstein carried out measurements in agricultural businesses and determined that the electricity consumption of an agricultural business can be sunk by up to 60%. The peak demand can also be reduced by up to 20 %.

The 5,000 Euro 3rd prize was shared equally by Dipl.-Ing. Dr. Katalin Nora Szarka, with a project on biomass utilization, and Dipl.-Ing Claus Mattausch, with a project on the ascertainment of availability of district heating networks, which have been established on the basis of electricity grid operations.

Submission deadline for the VERENA Award is in a few days' time, on 31 March 2009. Further information can be found in the section VERENA-Förderpreis.

Verbund-CEO Wolfgang Anzengruber (right) awarded the VERENA Award on 24 March 2009 (Verbund Renewable Energy Award): The 1st prize, worth 4,000 Euro was awarded to Ernst Schriefl (left), the 2nd prize, worth 3,000 Euro went to Rene Braunstein (second from right). The 3rd prize (5,000 Euro) was shared equally by Claus Mattausch (centre) and Katalin Nora Szarka, who, for work-related reasons, was not able to accept the prize in person.

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